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Joyce ‘Dottie’ Rambo, a southern gospel singer and song writer, died on May 11, 2008 as a result of injuries sustained in a fatal bus accident outside of Springfield, Missouri. Rambo was traveling to a show when the tour bus they were traveling in struck a guard rail and hit an embankment. Rambo was pronounced dead on the scene. The accident was reportedly weather related.

Seven other people on the bus were injured in the wreck about two miles east of Mount Vernon on Interstate 44, the Missouri Highway Patrol said. They were hospitalized in Springfield with moderate to severe injuries, according to the patrol.

The 74 year old singer lived in Nashville, Tennessee and was on her way to a Mother’s Day performance in Texas at the time of the accident. Her music is renowned internationally for its simple melodies and articulate qualities, covering themes such as heaven, Christian sacrifice and the born again Christian experience.

Rambo fell into hard times but made a big career comeback in 2002. She was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2007 and the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame in 2006.

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After publishing this story we received a well written and thoughtful comment by one of our readers that we want to share, as it enhances the story of Dottie Rambo.

I was shocked and shaken as I read the news that Dottie Rambo had been killed in an accident. I had meet her about a month ago, here in Nashville, as she spoke to an eager audience about the craft of songwriting. She was elegant and friendly, with a warm smile that welcomed everyone she came into contact with. That evening, she went out of her way to connect even with the shyest in the room. She shared stories, sang a few songs accompanying herself on guitar and gave life lessons on songwriting. It was hard to watch her leave after captivating the audience, so many generations apart from her own.

Her wisdom and experience were timeless. Her life work of music included around 3,000 published works, an extreme accomplishment. She didn’t speak about her longsuffering, or how she overcame being paralyzed and out of the industry for at least eighteen years, another extreme accomplishment. She died the way she lived, working, on her way from one performance to the next.” submitted by Dawn Hafner